5 American Inventions

Davis owned and operated a tailor shop
in the small railroad town of
Reno, Nevada.
He made horse blankets and
wagon covers for railway workers
on the Central Pacific Railroad.

Jacob was also an inventor. He had
patented a steam powered
canal boat and a steam powered
ore crusher.

Unfortunately his
inventions weren't successful because
he couldn't convince any
investors or companies to
get involved.

One day, a customer came into his
tailor shop complaining
about a problem she had with
her husband. The problem wasn't
so much with her husband as it
was with his pants.

The woman
explained that her husband was a big
man who cut wood along the
railway and his pants just wouldn't
last.

She asked Davis to make her
strong pants - something that
wouldn't pull apart at the seams. She
even offered to pay Jacobs $3 a pair -
a large sum for pants at
the time.

Davis experimented with different
ways to make
pants stronger, and
used the same
heavy denim and duck
cotton fabric he
used to make wagon covers.

He also
reinforced the pockets and
seams with the same
copper rivets he used for
attaching straps to
horse blankets.

The pants were
a huge
success. Word spread
quickly and orders
came into
his shop just a fast.

Davis, being the experienced
inventor that he was, knew he needed more
resources.
He
approached the company
that supplied him with textiles - Levi Strauss &
Company in San Francisco.

Jacob wrote a
letter to Levi Strauss telling him
about the success of his
new pants and suggested
a business
proposal.

Eventually, the two men came to
an agreement to patent, manufacture
and distribute the pants, which became
known as Levi jeans.

Jacob's invention was
patented
on May 20, 1873. The patent wasn't for denim
material
but for
how rivets were used to reinforce
pant and pocket seams.

To the left is a picture of the label
that was sewn on the jeans.

It
shows the company's trademark
of two horses trying to pull apart
the jeans - a symbol of strength.

Manufacturing processes evolved
over the years to make jeans worn-looking, softer
and more flexible, which appealed
to a greater number of consumers.

Today, the average American owns
seven pairs of jeans. Last year,
$13.8 billion dollars worth of blue
jeans were sold in the United States. which definitely makes this invention one of the 5 American inventions that you're wearing.

Sources: levi.in; npd.com; creativecommons.org

Zipper

The zipper was invented in 1891 by
Whitcomb L. Judson,
a mechanical engineer
from Chicago.

Judson had numerous inventions
and patents. Most of his
inventions were related to
a pneumatic street railway
technology to operate
streetcars using
compressed air.

This
technology was impractical
at the time because of the
difficulty making
air tight seals.

Judson's
most famous invention was
his "clasp locker" -
a faster and easier
way to tie and untie boots.

It
was a series of interlocking
hooks that could be engaged
or disengaged with the
single continuous movement
of a tab. It was the first functional
zipper.

Judson started the
Fastener Manufacturing and Machine
Company and began
marketing his new invention.

Sales of the "clasp locker"
were slow and garment
manufacturers complained that
the interlocking hooks pulled apart
too easily.

So Judson hired
Gideon Sundback, an electrical
engineer, to make improvements.
Judson created two rows of continuous
teeth that
were shaped into dimples and scoops
that clamped together with a slider.

The B.F. Goodrich Company decided
to use the fastener on rubber boots they were marketing.

They named the fastener a "zipper" because of the sound it made when closing and opening (known as onomatopoeia - a word the imitates or suggests the sound that it describes such as "oink" or "meow").

Zippers didn't quite replace laces in boots but they did become very popular in jackets. So zippers are included in our list of 5 American inventions that you're wearing.

Sources: mit.edu; uspto.gov; creativecommons.org

Nylon

Nylon was invented by Wallace Carothers
on February 29, 1935 while working for
the chemical company Dupont.

Carothers was a Ph D. chemist
supervising research at the Dupont
Experimental
Station Laboratory in Wilmington,
Delaware.

The laboratory was devoted to
speculative research to better
understand fundamental chemical
principles. It was known as
"Purity Hall".

Carothers was
teaching organic
chemistry at Harvard University,
when Dupont pursued him and
others to work at their facility.
The laboratory was eventually
staffed by a small group of
brilliant Ph.D chemists.

During his
research at the laboratory
Carothers discovered a synthetic
thermoplastic fiber. He called
this new fiber "Polyamide 66".

The material was made from readily
available ingredients and possessed
desirable properties. It was like silk but rugged,
durable and resistant to
tears, water, heat,
mildew, mold, and chemical damage.

The new synthetic fiber was first introduced in 1938
as bristles in
toothbrushes.

In 1940 it was promoted at the New
York World's Fair as a new fabric
for women stockings and was
named "nylon".

Originally,
the name "no-run" was considered
to emphasize the fabric's
resistance to "unraveling" or "running". But it
sounded too much like "neuron" so
they substituted some letters and
came up with "nylon".

The new hosiery, known simply as
"nylons", went on sale in department
stores
throughout America on
15 May, 1940.

In
the first day, 5 million pairs
were sold. The average price
was $1.25 a pair.

Nylon hosiery
looked and felt like silk - but
it was cheaper and better -
it was machine washable -
didn't need ironing - and resisted
tearing. Woman loved them.

Nylon fabric was also in demand
to support the war effort. It was used
to manufacture
parachutes, tenting,
outerwear and other military
material.

Today, the use of nylon is
extensive - flags, guitar
strings, tires, machine parts,
gun handles, sutures .... and clothing, which makes nylon one of the 5 American inventions you're wearing.

The fabric is a soft, rubber-like polyester that
has unique properties. It can regain
its shape after being stretched 600%
of its original size.

It is lightweight and
blends easily with other fibers.

Spandex doesn't
deteriorate when exposed to oily skin,
perspiration, lotions, soaps or detergents.
Originally known as fiber "K", the name was changed to "spandex", which is
an anagram for the word "expands".

Spandex is used
in sportswear, undergarments,
hosiery, shapewear and swimwear. Future uses
include footwear and bedsheets.

Dupont's
trade name for spandex is Lycra.
Revenues from this invention exceed 1.5 billion dollars each year.